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Quemuel Ottoni, the only man to defeat Alex Pereira thus far in his short MMA career, captured the Jungle Fight welterweight crown this past Sunday in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

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To win the title, Ottoni dominated Jose Diaz on the feet for two rounds before submitting him with a rear-naked choke at the 2:40 mark of Round 3 in the Jungle Fight 107 main event. Ottoni, who owns six career victories under the Jungle Fight baner, responded to what he says was a private message from Pereira in the aftermath of his championship triumph.

 “Alex ‘Poatan’ sent me a private message saying that I would be nothing more than a ‘Jungle fighter.’ Today I am Jungle champion,” Ottoni said. “A title, by the way, that you never conquered. And don't forget that it was in this cage that I submitted you.”

After the event, Ottoni revealed to PVT journalist Leonardo Fabri that his goal is to compete in…

A women’s featherweight showdown pitting Cat Zingano against Pam Sorenson that was originally slated for Bellator 276 is now in the works for Bellator 282.

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Zingano, who pulled out of the original booking due to injury, first mentioned the matchup during an interview with The Schmo. MMAFighting.com has since reported that both fighters have verbally agreed to the pairing.

Additionally, Sabah Homasi has signed a new contract with the promotion and will square off against Maycon Mendonca at Bellator 282. The California-based organization confirmed the bout following an initial report from Cageside Press.

Bellator 282 takes place on June 24 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., and is headlined by a middleweight title clash between Gegard Mousasi and Johnny Eblen. The main card airs on Showtime and will also include a pair of semifinals in the bantamweight grand prix, as Magomed Magomedov meets Enrique Barzola, while Leandro Higo takes on D…

Photos submitted by Jorge Masvidal’s attorney, Bradford Cohen, depict the alleged injuries to the face of “C.C.” — his identifier for Covington — as exhibits in a request for the fighter’s medical records.

Story by @MMAFightingSM https://t.co/gJA0Q2hjGQ pic.twitter.com/gpVDzpIhqR

— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) May 3, 2022

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There is now some visual evidence of the damage suffered by Colby Covington in an alleged attack by UFC rival Jorge Masvidal outside a Miami restaurant on March 21.

The images surfaced after Masvidal’s attorneys included them in a motion filed requesting Covington’s medical records. Covington recently modified his complaint, adding that he suffered a brain injury in addition to a fractured tooth, wrist abrasion and damage to his Rolex watch. While Covington’s tooth is clearly broken in the images, Masvidal’s attorney, Bradford Cohen, expressed skepticism in the fighter’s claims regarding the brain i…

Justin Gaethje has been critical of Charles Oliveira in the past, and “The Highlight” isn’t exactly walking back those comments as their lightweight title bout as UFC 274 approaches.

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Gaethje has previously accused Oliviera of quitting in fights. In a recent interview with ESPN, Gaethje explained his reasoning.

“Something about me, I say what I think,” Gaethje said. “I wasn’t being overly critical, he wasn’t a bad champion. I was saying in the times that he’s lost, he didn’t even get knocked out — he quit sometimes. The choice to quit is something that one makes, and once you make it you can make it again, because you know that it’s there. I don’t believe I’ve ever made that choice.

“I believe that he has. That’s all I was saying is that I believe deep down he knows his way out and that’s to quit when he gets hit too many times, too hard.”

Oliveira was up-and-down early in his UFC tenure, but the reigning 155-pound king is in the midst of a 1…

Dan Hooker began his career at featherweight, but after an unsuccessful return to 145 pounds in March, it sounds like he’ll be competing at lightweight for the foreseeable future.

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Hooker is coming off a first-round technical knockout loss to Arnold Allen in a featherweight bout at UFC Fight Night 204 in London on March 19. That move came on the heels of a stretch in which he lost three of four lightweight appearances. Ultimately, Hooker decided the effort needed to make 145 pounds wasn’t worth it.

“I felt like I could’ve stayed at 145, but obviously a lot of sacrifice goes into that,” Hooker said on Submission Radio. “But off of the result of the last fight, and then I feel like I’m in the exact same position at both weight classes – so why not? Why would I make the extra sacrifice? The extra sacrifice was to get me back in the same position that I was in. You know what I mean? But if I’m in the exact same position, I’d rather be in the exact same …

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC

The physical transformation was evident on the scales, but the results remained the same for Alexander Romanov at UFC on ESPN 35.

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The biggest favorite on Saturday’s card, Romanov rolled through Chase Sherman for a submission win 2:11 into Round 1 of their preliminary heavyweight bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The more svelte Romanov revealed that he underwent something a physical transformation while speaking to assembled media after the fight.

“My body has changed a lot,” Romanov said. “We a lot worked with my coach and trainer on cardio, on our footwork. My coach made for me a special diet. I lost around 45 pounds in the last three months. I feel that I’m in the best shape of my career now. But we just started this.”

The 31-year-old Moldovan wasted little time taking his opponent down, moving to mount and unloading ground-and-pound before securing a keylock to elicit a tap from She…

Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC Credit: Getty/UFC

The physical transformation was evident on the scales, but the results remained the same for Alexander Romanov at UFC on ESPN 35.

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The biggest favorite on Saturday’s card, Romanov rolled through Chase Sherman for a submission win 2:11 into Round 1 of their preliminary heavyweight bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The more svelte Romanov revealed that he underwent something a physical transformation while speaking to assembled media after the fight.

“My body has changed a lot,” Romanov said. “We a lot worked with my coach and trainer on cardio, on our footwork. My coach made for me a special diet. I lost around 45 pounds in the last three months. I feel that I’m in the best shape of my career now. But we just started this.”

The 31-year-old Moldovan wasted little time taking his opponent down, moving to mount and unloading ground-and-pound before securing a keylock to elicit a tap from She…

A middleweight showdown pitting Darren Till against Jack Hermansson has been targeted for UFC Fight Night in London on July 23.

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MMANytt.se was first to report the booking. UFC London takes place at the O2 Arena and features a heavyweight tilt between Curtis Blaydes and Tom Aspinall.

A former welterweight title challenger, Till has lost four of his last five Octagon appearances. Most recently, “The Gorilla” was submitted by Derek Brunson in the third-round of their main event bout at UFC Fight Night 191 last September. Till’s lone victory during this recent rough stretch was a split-decision triumph against Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 244.

Hermansson, meanwhile, has alternated wins and losses in his last six UFC bouts. “The Joker” is coming of a split-decision setback to Sean Strickland in the UFC Fight Night 200 headliner on Feb. 5. Prior to that, he outpointed Edmen Shahbazyan at UFC Fight Night 188 in his lone outing of 2021.

The first time Marlon Vera and Jose Aldo squared off, it didn’t go Vera’s way.

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Aldo defeated Vera via unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 183 in December 2020. While Vera enjoyed success with leg kicks and knees in close quarters, Aldo punctuated his victory with a takedown and back control in the third round. With three straight victories under his belt since then, Vera wouldn’t mind crossing paths with Aldo in the Octagon again.

“I would love to fight Aldo again, especially in a five-rounder especially since he declined a five-rounder when we fought last December (2020),” Vera said on Saturday. “I would love to kick his ass. If we get to match again I would finish him, I can guarantee you that.”

Vera held up well in a five-round affair at UFC on ESPN 35, where he scored three knockdowns en route to a unanimous decision triumph over Rob Font in Saturday night’s bantamweight headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

“I feel good in there. I j…

Marlon Vera and Rob Font had a battle to remember in the UFC on ESPN 35 headliner, but only Vera will reap the extra financial rewards.

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The bantamweight bout was selected as “Fight of the Night,” but since Font missed weight by 2.5 pounds on Friday, Vera will pocket the entirety of the $100,000 in bonus money. Propelled by three knockdowns, Vera survived impressive striking volume to win via unanimous decision on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Elsewhere, Joanderson Brito received a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check for making short work of Andre Fili in a featured featherweight encounter. The Dana White’s Contender Series alum stung his foe with a pair of left jabs before dropping Fili with a massive overhand right. A barrage of hammerfists brought the show to a close just 41 seconds into Round 1.

Finally, Francisco Figueiredo earned the evening’s other $50,000 “Performance of the Night” check thanks to slick submission triumph…

Marlon Vera simply had too many weapons in his arsenal for Rob Font.

Making the most of his first headlining appearance in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Vera battered and bloodied the visage of his opponent en route to an impressive unanimous decision triumph at UFC on ESPN 35 on Saturday night at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. All three cageside judges had the fight in favor of Vera: 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46.

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Font, who missed weight by 2.5 pounds on Friday, was in a rhythm from the outset, as he worked behind a stellar jab, straight punching combinations and uppercuts through the guard of his adversary. While Font (19-6, 9-5 UFC) landed in superior volume throughout, Vera (19-7-1, 13-6 UFC) connected with the strikes of consequence.

Vera began to assert himself late in Round 2, when he floored Font with a left hook and dropped elbows from above until the horn sounded. It would be a recurring theme for the rest of the fight. Vera dropped Font with …

Sherdog's live UFC on ESPN 35 coverage will begin Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.

Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below.

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BetUS.com is offering our listeners an incredible 125% bonus on their deposit for PFL and UFC. Use code SHERDOG and get $2500 in extra money to make fight night even better. Round 1 Taira vs. Candelario was canceled on Saturday afternoon due to an illness suffered by Candelario, and it has been postponed to the May 14 UFC card. News of its cancelation was disclosed by UFC officials. Round 1 There’s no sugar coating this one: this is far from the best UFC offering there has ever been. The fact that this now 11-fight show is being displayed on the flagship network of ESPN for its main card is a testament to the content-demanding contract signed by the promotion and its broadcast partner. If fight fans are lucky, this scrappy, rag-tag group of underachievers with only 10 of the 22 fighters sp…

1️⃣6️⃣-0️⃣@KongRomanov came in to handle BUSINESS.

[ #UFCVegas53 | Prelims LIVE on ESPN 2 ] pic.twitter.com/wlUttQucl3

— UFC (@ufc) April 30, 2022

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Alexander Romanov was by far the biggest betting favorite on the UFC on ESPN 35 card, and he performed as such.

The Moldovan known as “King Kong” encountered little resistance from short-notice foe Chase Sherman en route to a quick submission victory in a preliminary heavyweight bout on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Romanov put Sherman away with a keylock at the 2:11 mark of the opening round to keep his undefeated record intact.

Romanov (16-0, 5-0 UFC) wasted little time getting Sherman (15-10, 3-9 UFC) to the canvas, as he landed an initial takedown and then suplexed his foe on his head within the bout’s first 30 seconds. Sherman had one more attempt at standing before he was planted on his back again. From there, Romanov passed to full mount, walked his foe…

A matchup of featherweight contenders is set for UFC Austin, as Calvin Kattar and Josh Emmett will lock horns on June 18.

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The promotion confirmed the booking during the UFC on ESPN 35 broadcast on Saturday. UFC Fight Night takes place at the Moody Center in Austin and includes a number of reported bouts, including Phil Hawes vs. Deron Winn and Kyle Daukaus vs. Roman Dolidze.

After absorbing a horrific beating from Max Holloway in the UFC on ABC 1 headliner, Kattar bounced back in his most recent outing, taking a five-round verdict over Giga Chikadze at UFC on ESPN 32 approximately one year later. “The Boston Finisher” has won three of his last four Octagon appearances.

After being sidelined for more than a year recovering from knee surgery, Emmett made a triumphant return at UFC 269 with a unanimous decision win over Dan Ige. The 37-year-old Team Alpha Male member has won four straight promotional appearances dating back to 2019.

A heavyweight bout between Ciryl Gane and Tai Tuivasa is expected to serve as the headliner when the UFC heads to Paris on Sept. 3.

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The matchup was initially reported by Ariel Helwani. The location has not been finalized, but assuming it holds up, it will mark the Las Vegas-based promotion’s first venture to France.

A former interim heavyweight champion, Gane is coming off a five-round decision loss to Francis Ngannou in a title unification bout at UFC 270 on Jan. 22. Prior to that, the Frenchman known as “Bon Gamin” was victorious in his first 10 professional appearances, including notable UFC wins over the likes of Derrick Lewis, Alexander Volkov, Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Junior dos Santos.

Tuivasa has seen his share of peaks and valleys thus far in his UFC tenure. After winning his first three bouts, “Bam Bam” dropped three straight contests from 2018 to 2019. He has since turned things around, going on a five-fight winning streak — all f…

Curtis Blaydes and Tom Aspinall will headline the card when the Ultimate Fighting Championship heads back to London on July 23.

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Ariel Helwani was first to report the heavyweight bout, which is expected to be finalized soon with verbal agreements already in place. The UFC Fight Night event takes place at the O2 in London and will mark the promotion’s second trip to the city in 2022.

Blaydes made his first appearance of the year at UFC on ESPN 33, where he defeated Chris Daukaus via second-round technical knockout on March 26. The Elevation Fight Team representative has been victorious in six of his last seven Octagon appearances, with his lone defeat coming against Derrick Lewis at UFC Fight Night 185.

A native of Manchester, England, Aspinall has emerged as a person of interest at heavyweight following five straight victories within the Las Vegas-based promotion. Most recently, Aspinall submitted former Bellator and M-1 Global champ Alexander…

A matchup of flyweight prospects pitting Carlos Candelario against Tatsuro Taira will not go down at UFC on ESPN 35 on Saturday as originally anticipated.

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The Las Vegas-based promotion announced a few hours before the event that the bout has been pulled from the card due to a Candelario illness. The 125-pound pairing has been rescheduled for UFC on ESPN 36 on May 14.

As a result, UFC on ESPN 35 will proceed with 11 fights. The card takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and is headlined by a bantamweight showdown between Rob Font and Marlon Vera.

Candelario suffered his first defeat in nine professional outings last August, when he dropped a split decision to Victor Altamirano on Dana White’s Contender Series.

Japan’s Taira is 12-0 as a professional and is coming off three consecutive first-round submission victories, two with Shooto and one with Vale Tudo Japan.

UFC on ESPN 36 also takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and i…

Alex Polizzi will replace Melvin Manhoef and face Yoel Romero at Bellator 280.

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Dutch outlet Redactie Telesport was first to report the new booking, and Sherdog.com subsequently confirmed the bout with a promotion official. Manhoef was forced to withdraw due to an injury incurred in the recent apprehension of three burglars at his home. During that incident, Manhoef reportedly smashed a car window with his bare hand, which resulted in the Dutch striker needing stitches.

Bellator 280 takes place at Accor Arena in Paris on May 6 and is headlined by a heavyweight title tilt between Ryan Bader and Cheick Kongo. Romero vs. Polizzi is currently scheduled to be the card’s co-main event.

Polizzi has been victorious in four of his five promotional appearances, with his lone defeat coming to light heavyweight grand prix competitor Julius Anglickas at Bellator 251. The Madison, Wisc., native is currently in the midst of a three-bout winning streak tha…

AnnMaria DeMars, the mother of ex-UFC champion Ronda Rousey, was recently appointed to the California State Athletic Commission.

The move was announced by the office of California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday. She will serve as a commissioner on the six-person CSAC team and will have a say in the regulation of combat sports in the state. DeMars needs approval from the California state senate to make her position official, but that is expected to be a formality. The full statement regarding De Mars is as follows:

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AnnMaria DeMars, 63, of Santa Monica, has been appointed to the State Athletic Commission. DeMars has been President at the Julia Group since 2008 and at 7 Generation Games since 2013. DeMars was Partner at Spirit Lake Consulting from 2002 to 2008. DeMars is a member of the American Statistical Association, National Indian Education Association, Judo Black Belt Association and United States Judo Association. She earned a Master of Business A…

Y’all watch me choke my chicken in Austin, TX on June 18th!!!!!! 🍗 🐔 🦢

Ohh and I cashed out on that Cowboy Oliveira bounty…. 50G’s baby #dirtybird #austintx #2022 #fightnight #webackoutside #onlyfanshaditfirst pic.twitter.com/1jBfmkWh10

— Kevin Holland (@Trailblaze2top) April 29, 2022 Leave it to the Ultimate Fighting ChampionshipKevin Holland to turn a standard fight announcement into a big drama show.

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Holland (22-7, 1 NC) released a video on Friday that gave out the date and location of his next fight, as well as his opponent. Fighting with someone dressed up as Big Bird wearing roller skates, Holland declared that he would be taking on Tim Means (32-12-1, 1 NC) on the unnamed UFC Fight Night card on June 18. The two will tangle in the welterweight division at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas, signaling his return to his adopted state of Texas for the first time since 2018. It will be the first appearance f…

1️⃣3️⃣6️⃣ for @ChitoVeraUFC 💪

[ #UFCVegas53 | Prelims 4pm ET on ESPN 2 | Main Card 7pm ET LIVE on @ESPN ] pic.twitter.com/MClsC0vUci

— UFC (@ufc) April 29, 2022 Despite Rob Font missing weight, UFC on ESPN 35's main event is still set as Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight contender Marlon Vera is going forward with their five-round scrap.

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Font (19-5) officially weighed 138.5 pounds for his third UFC main event, or 2.5 pounds over the bantamweight limit. As a result, Font has been fined 20% of his purse that will go to his opponent. The rest of the 12-fight card all made weight, making Font the lone unprofessional participant.

Font's impressive four-fight win streak came to an end in his last bout against Jose Aldo. The former UFC featherweight champion turned back the clock and looked great throughout five rounds, leaving Font to go back to the drawing board. Font will look to impress like past showings agai…

My girl @MayceeBarber is up the same night as me! #ufc276 https://t.co/cP7yDgYrLN

— Jessy Jess (@missjessyjess) April 29, 2022 Before the final round of socialing had even gone out, the Ultimate Fighting Championship located an excellent replacement to keep a July matchup intact.

Casey O'Neill withdrew from her matchup with Jessica Eye (15-10, 1 NC) on Thursday due to a torn ACL, scuttling their UFC 276 flyweight pairing. That night, BJPenn.com first reported that the promotion had already locked down someone to fight in O’Neill’s stead: Maycee Barber (10-2). On Friday, Barber confirmed the news of this fight on her Instagram, verifying that this battle will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on July 2.

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Barber comes in with momentum on her side, having won her last two on the scorecards against fellow promising young talents Miranda Maverick and Montana De La Rosa, with the latter coming in April. Those tw…

6 Points and the 1st round finish for Bruno Cappelozza!#2022PFL2 pic.twitter.com/HcBajmTR8W

— PFL (@PFLMMA) April 29, 2022

Bruno Henrique Cappelozza picked up right where he left off in 2021.

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The defending Professional Fighters League heavyweight champion turned away Stuart Austin with punches in the first round of their PFL 2 headliner on Thursday at Esports Stadium in Arlington, Texas. A onetime British Association of Mixed Martial Arts titleholder, Austin (15-8, 0-2 PFL) checked out 4:24 into Round 1.

Cappelozza (15-5, 5-0 PFL) bided his time and waited for an opportunity to present itself. A jarring overhand right had Austin diving at the Brazilian’s legs out of desperation and led to his being pinned to the canvas. Cappelozza methodically floated from half guard to full mount, postured in a dominant position and dropped punches until the job was done.

Meanwhile, former Ring of Combat champion Chris Wade reb…

BetUS.com is offering our listeners an incredible 125% bonus on their deposit for PFL and UFC. Use code SHERDOG and get $2500 in extra money to make fight night even better.

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The 2022 Professional Fighters League Season continues Thursday at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Check out the MMA Forums to discuss the card or enter your comments and predictions below.

Round 1 Last week in PFL, lightweights and light heavyweights took the stage to start off the 2022 season. This week, fight fans will be treated to 10 matchups – all tournament-eligible this time – in the featherweight and heavyweight categories. We begin the night at 145 pounds, in a classic battle of Mexico vs. Germany as Monterrey native Flores (19-3, 1-0 PFL) faces off against Frankfurt’s own Bolaghi (14-2-1, 0-0 PFL). The referee for the first match of the evening is Keith Peterson, and he starts the night off right by kicking nonsense out of the arena. The two men touch gloves, and Flores sticks o…